REPORTER STAFF
Redmond Police filed charges of rape and criminal impersonation on Friday against a 27-year-old Bellevue man accused of impersonating a police officer to force women to have sex with him free.
The Redmond incident occurred on Oct. 17 and Bellevue Police arrested the man earlier this week after he pulled a similar stunt in Bellevue on Oct. 3.
Bellevue Police were able to find the suspect after the 19-year-old victim reported the first incident, which took place on Oct. 3 at the suspect’s apartment in the 14400 block of Northeast 42nd Place in Bellevue.
The woman had advertised as an escort on craigslist.org. The suspect responded to the ad, and when they met in person he quickly displayed a badge and identification and told her he was a police officer. He said he would not arrest her and take her to jail if she had sex with him.
With information provided by the victim, investigators were able to locate the apartment and identify the suspect. Detectives arrested the suspect on Oct. 20 and executed a search warrant on the apartment. They found a badge – similar to a police badge – homemade fake police identification, handcuffs, and a pistol.
Redmond Police filed charges against the same suspect for a similar incident in Redmond when the suspect was housesitting for a friend, according to Jim Bove, Redmond Police spokesperson.
The suspect contacted an 18-year-old Mountlake Terrace woman offering massages on craigslist.org. When she arrived at the Redmond apartment, located in the 8500 block of 148th Avenue Northeast, the suspect flashed a false badge and gave her two choices: either get arrested or have sex with him. He also pulled out a gun and held it to her head until she had sex with him, Bove said.
The victim called Redmond Police right after the incident and confirmed the identity of the suspect after his arrest in Bellevue earlier this week, Bove said.
“They were able to connect the dots on the two cases,” Bove said, adding that there were probably other victims of the suspect’s sexual ploy.
